Natural gas as an instrument of Russia’s regional and global policy on the world energy market

The article analyzes the peculiarities of Russia's energy policy at the present stage. It is noted that in today's complex environment natural gas is one of the tools for implementing foreign policy goals at the regional and global level. Russia is one of the world's leading exporters of natural gas and therefore has a major impact on the global market. However, the tensions flared up between Moscow and the European Union, putting it out of the ranks of Russia's credible and stable partners in the energy sector, despite the lack of any alternatives for Russian energy supplies to Europe and the United States. Under sanctions pressure from Western countries, Russia has reoriented export traffic to the East, choosing China as the key recipient of energy supplies. Bilateral cooperation in this field appears to be a promising area for securing the national interests of both the PRC and the Russian Federation.